Aerosols of various types of chemicals have been used for numerous agricultural purposes, such as mosquito abatement, weed control and treatment of post-harvest crops. Examples of various types of thermal foggers used to create aerosols are identified in the following U.S. Patents: U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,935,660, 6,322,002, and 6,068,888 to Forsythe et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,723,364 to Bompiex et al., as well as in product literature from Curtis Dyna-Fog, Ltd.
Such thermal foggers generally operate by mixing a flowing stream of hot gas with a measured amount of a liquid chemical to be aerosolized. The hot gas stream may be combustion gases, as in the U.S. Pat. No. 6,322,002 ('002 Patent) to Forsythe et al., or a hot air stream, as in the U.S. Pat. No. 6,723,364 ('364 Patent) to Bompiex et al. Regardless of the type of hot gas utilized, the efficiency and capacity of such a fogger and the quality of the fog (aerosol) produced depends upon the interaction of the hot gas and the liquid chemical in an aerosolization chamber of the fogger. For certain purposes, such as mosquito abatement and weed control, the efficiency of the fogger and the quality of the aerosol may be of minor importance. However, for other purposes, such as the fogging of chemicals to treat stored crops and treatment of stored potatoes with sprout inhibitors, the capacity, efficiency and quality of the aerosol are of prime importance. Certain techniques involved in treating potato storage facilities are indicated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,887,525 to Morgan.
In many treatment applications, the quality and uniformity of the aerosol is important. For example, for the aerosolization of molten CIPC (isopropyl-N-chlorophenylcarbamate), a stable, persistent aerosol is important to achieve efficient thermal fogging.
Methods of application and structural improvements are ongoing in crop-storage facilities, such as in the potato storage industry, particularly to improve the capacity, efficiency and/or quality of thermal foggers and the aerosols produced therefrom.